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Over the years, I have found that quiet post-apocalyptic scenarios, which focus more on characters trying
to survive in their new circumstances, are usually more interesting than those interested in hardware and spectacle. I'm thinking about films like
“Testament” (1983), a powerful drama in which Jane Alexander played a suburban
mom trying to keep her family together in the wake of a nuclear attack; “Miracle Mile” (1988), a wonderful thriller about a man who inadvertently
receives a phone call claiming that a nuclear war has been launched and his
city will be hit in just over an hour; and “Seeking a Friend for the End of the
World” (2012), a quirky and sadly underrated comedy-drama about people dealing
with love and loss in the last few days before an asteroid hits Earth and
destroys all life. The similarly low-key Canadian import “Into the Forest” may
not quite hit the heights of those examples, but this story of a pair of
mismatched sisters forced to face the unthinkable is, at least for most of its
running time, a strong, smart and moving end-of-the-world drama that is further
bolstered by strong performances from co-stars Ellen Page and Evan Rachel Wood.

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Based on a novel by Jean Hegland and set in the not-too-distant
future, the film introduces us to Nell (Page) and Eva (Wood), two sisters
living in a house hidden away in the woods of Northern
California with their recently widowed father (Callum Keith Rennie). Although
the distance from the nearest town inspires them to keep plenty of provisions
on hand, the sisters are hardly the survivalist type—Nell is online all the
time studying for her exams while Eva is relentlessly preparing for an upcoming
dance recital. All of that changes one day when the power mysteriously goes
out. At first, this seems to be just a minor annoyance, but not only does it
never come back on, there is talk that the entire country—possibly even the
world—is still in the dark. Although the loss of power puts a crimp in their
immediate plans, Nell and Eva are in a slightly better position than others in
the area—as we realize during a creepy visit to the nearby town for what
provisions still remain—thanks to the resourcefulness of their father. When that lifeline is soon cruelly cut off, the two are
forced to face an uncertain future in which they have to figure out how to
survive on their own. They face
dangers ranging from starvation to illness to inhumanity within other people.

“Into the Forest” was written and directed by Canadian filmmaker
Patricia Rozema, whose previous efforts have included the charming comedy-drama
“I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing” and a very good adaptation of Jane Austen’s
“Mansfield Park.” Instead of framing the story as an us-against-them narrative
with the sisters coming together to fight off the outside dangers, Rozema is
more interested in watching two people who have little in common beyond shared
genetic material trying to coexist at a time when even the smallest
and most seemingly innocuous things—a visit from Nell’s boyfriend (Max
Minghella), watching a home movie with a generator that uses precious gasoline
or a hoarded piece of candy—can have serious consequences. Instead
of making Nell and Eva into instant saints, she allows them to have the moments
of anger, prickliness and selfishness that any of us would most likely succumb
to given the circumstances. While all of this is going on,
she also creates a quiet but palpable sense of menace regarding the world
outside the house, where even the slightest odd noise can be the harbinger of
some potential horror from which they cannot easily escape.

Adding to the power of the story are the performances from Page
and Wood. At first glance, the casting might seem to be a bit questionable—both
actresses are clearly a few crucial years older than the characters they're playing and they don’t exactly look much like sisters, either. And yet, while
they may not resemble siblings that much, that aspect is quickly forgotten
because of how deftly they create the idea of long-standing family
ties—the kind that occasionally choke as well as bind, and find themselves
being both tested and strengthened under extreme circumstances. At first, the
two are clearly playing to their strengths—Page is the more outwardly strong
and pragmatic Nell while Wood is the dreamier and more ethereal Eva—but as the
story progresses and circumstances change, they find new dimensions to the
characters as well. Page brings an unexpected vulnerability to Nell without
sacrificing her basic strength while Wood, in the best role she has had in
quite a while, gives Eva the kind of nerve and determination one would
hardly expect her to possess based on our initial glimpses of her. Callum Keith Rennie and Max Minghella are also good in their smaller roles, and there is another memorable
supporting turn from Michael Eklund as a local who figures in the film’s most
harrowing moment, one that Rozema thankfully does not milk for cheap thrills or
empty heroics.

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The one major problem with “Into the Forest,” the one that keeps
it from making that final leap of good movie to a potentially great
one, is that the final third is just not quite as strong as the stuff that
precedes it. Rozema doesn’t seem to have as sturdy of a grip on this
section, and while the ingredients are certainly there for a satisfying
conclusion, they just don’t quite come together in an entirely satisfying
manner. (Of course, one could argue that by giving viewers an uncertain
conclusion, Rozema is attempting to put viewers in the footsteps of her
protagonists.) That problem aside, “Into the Forest” is an undeniably interesting,
oftentimes affecting and, yes, unapologetically feminist take on the
post-apocalyptic narrative. Unfortunately, by coming out in the middle of the summer opposite blockbuster banalities like “Jason Bourne,” there is a good chance it will come and go from theaters. But find a way to see "Into the Forest," for it is the kind of film that will not only stick with you, it will even make you think.

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